Kentucky man arrested for throwing woman off cliff now charged with murdering her son

FRANKFORT, Ky. — A Kentucky man arrested for kidnapping a woman and throwing her off a cliff has now been charged with the murder of her 5-year-old son.

Kentucky State Police say they have charged Lonnie Belt with murder in connection with the death of James Spoonamore. Belt was already facing charges of kidnapping, assault and tampering with evidence related to the attack on Jessica Durham, Spoonamore’s mother.

Durham survived the attack and is recovering at a hospital in Lexington. Police found Spoonamore’s body on Monday in Jackson County, about a half-mile from where Durham had been located.

An arrest citation says Belt and Durham got into an argument about money. Belt allegedly hit her on the head, tied her up and took her to the cliff.